Epson Introduces the Ultimate Digital Darkroom Printer

July 18, 2002 - Epson America Inc. is adding another superior product to its award-winning photo printer line and is debuting this new printer at Macworld Expo. The EPSON Stylus Photo 960 is the successor to the popular EPSON Stylus Photo 890 and addresses the needs of variety of customers including advanced amateur photographers, photography enthusiasts and hobbyists. With its amazing image quality and fast speeds, this printer is ideal for applications such as photo competitions, personal portfolios, professional illustrations and photographic presentations.

The EPSON Stylus Photo 960 utilizes Epson's Advanced Micro Piezo ink jet technology, the world's first two-picoliter ink droplet and a superior six-color photo ink system for creating incredible detail, more accurate skin tones and an ultra-wide color range designed specifically for photography. This six-color system actually contains seven individual ink cartridges-two black cartridges for faster text printing-making this printer Epson's first dye-based model to use a separate ink cartridge system.

"The EPSON Stylus Photo 960 is another outstanding product from Epson. It builds upon all of the strengths that have distinguished our photo printers from other brands and includes new features that enhance the versatility and performance of the printer," said Parker Plaisted product manager, photo imaging. "When you need your prints to look the absolute best that they possibly can, this is the printer that you want."

More About the EPSON Stylus Photo 960
The EPSON Stylus Photo 960 provides the best photo quality from inkjets today with its resolution up to 2880 x 1440 dpi, wide-gamut, dye-based inks and two-picoliter droplet size. This printer can not only produce "dotless" photo quality with smooth gradations for prints that are indistinguishable from traditional photos, but it can do it quickly as well.

The EPSON Stylus Photo 960 offers fast photo printing speeds that are twice as fast as the previous model, allowing customers to print an 8" x 10" image in less than two minutes at 720 dpi on glossy and matte papers. Additionally, the printer can speed through black text with its twin black cartridges at up to 6 ppm.

By utilizing innovations such as PRINT Image Matching technology and Epson's patented, true BorderFree photo printing technology, the EPSON Stylus Photo 960 is able to produce the best prints possible in a variety of frame-ready and portfolio-ready photo paper sizes. Customers can effortlessly print their photos on Epson's Borderless 4" x 6" and 5" x 7" photo papers without having to trim the borders or tear off perforations.

Media Choices with the EPSON Stylus Photo 960
Epson offers a wide variety of papers for use with the EPSON Stylus Photo 960 including EPSON Premium Semigloss Photo Paper, EPSON Premium Luster Photo Paper, EPSON Premium Glossy Photo Paper and EPSON ColorLife Paper. Additionally, the EPSON Stylus Photo 960 offers the convenience of three separate paper paths including the standard paper path, a roll paper path and a front loading, straight through paper path for thicker media. The straight paper path supports a variety of media up to 1.3 mm in thickness. Using the separate roll paper path, the printer supports edge-to-edge borderless printing on 4" and 8.3" roll paper. A roll paper holder is included with the printer, along with a convenient automatic cutter that will easily cut borderless and panoramic prints on roll paper as the prints come out of the printer, turning the printer into a mini-photolab. The cutter is safely enclosed in a detachable housing. Also included with the printer is a "photo catcher" that attaches to the printer and keeps prints in a neat stack as they are cut from the roll.

The EPSON Stylus Photo 960 also produces long-lasting photos which can resist fading up to 25 years with Epson's optimized combination of photo inks and fade-resistant papers, like Epson's Matte Paper Heavyweight.

PRINT Image Matching
The EPSON Stylus Photo 960 includes EPSON Software Film Factory with PRINT Image Matching support and a P.I.M. Plug-in for Adobe Photoshop 7.0, Photoshop 6.0 and Adobe Photoshop Elements 2.0. PRINT Image Matching technology (P.I.M.), a breakthrough technology that Epson announced in February 2001, ensures that P.I.M.-enabled digital cameras and P.I.M.-enabled printers work perfectly together to create the best possible prints. The first P.I.M.-compatible products began shipping in summer 2001, and there are now over 45 P.I.M.-enabled products from 17 manufacturers of digital cameras, photo printers and software.

P.I.M. II technology and several digital cameras that include P.I.M. II have recently been announced. More information on the technology as well as a complete and current list of P.I.M.-compatible products is available at www.printimagematching.com.

Special Software Offers and Connectivity
There are several special software offers available for EPSON Stylus Photo 960 customers including a $100 discount on MonacoEZcolor and a trial version of the ROC and SHO Plug-ins from Applied Science Fiction for Adobe Photoshop and Elements.

Compatible with both Windows and Macintosh platforms, the printer features built-in parallel and USB 1.1 ports.

Pricing, Support and Availability
The EPSON Stylus Photo 960 will be available in September for an estimated street price of $349 through mail order, computer superstores, specialty camera stores, and Epson's retail Web site (www.epsonstore.com). The printer is backed by the one-year EPSON Exchange Warranty and is supported by the EPSON Connection, a customer support technical assistance line. More information about Epson and its products is available by calling 1-800-GO EPSON or visiting the company Web site at www.epson.com